Religiously Clean

As a visitor, it is but natural to see, and acknowledge the structures a particular place is quite proud of because these have also become the collective identity of the place itself. In Brunei Darussalam, most of the visitors’ destinations (no matter what one’s religious affiliation is) are these two great mosques – Omar Ali Saifuddien and Jame’Asr Hassanil Bolkiah.

Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque

As Christian, the idea of cleanliness in a place of worship of other religions such as Islam, is fascinating and admirable. So when I visited the said mosques in Brunei Darussalam, I took few snapshots of shoe racks and ablution facility as concrete Islamic examples of the phrase Cleanliness is next to Godliness.

Shoes not allowed inside the mosque

Faucets provided for washing ritual before prayers

That outdoor corridor leading to the Jame'Asr Hassanil Bolkiah Mosque is a space for leaving shoes